đź“·: Bayan Muna | FB
Former Bayan Muna Congressman Atty. Carlos Isagani Zarate today slammed oil companies for yet another round of big-time oil price hikes and criticized the Department of Energy (DOE) for its continued failure to implement long-overdue measures that would bring transparency and accountability to oil price setting in the country.
On April 22, oil firms including Seaoil and PetroGazz implemented significant price increases: P1.35 per liter for gasoline, P1.30 for diesel, and P1.10 for kerosene—a sharp reversal from the price rollbacks just the week before.
“This is the nth time that oil companies have imposed a big-time price hike with very little transparency. Consumers are kept in the dark while oil giants rake in profits,” said Zarate. “The excuses remain the same—OPEC cuts, U.S. sanctions, refinery maintenance—but the real issue is why the DOE has failed to protect Filipino consumers by mandating the unbundling of oil prices.”
Zarate emphasized that the DOE has been dragging its feet on issuing and fully implementing the guidelines for unbundling oil prices, which would require oil companies to disclose the breakdown of their pricing—such as import costs, refining, transport, taxes, and profit margins.
“Is the DOE protecting oil companies or are they being threatened by oil companies?” Zarate said. “The people deserve to know. Transparency is not optional—it is a matter of public interest, especially when every price hike means less food on the table for millions of Filipino families.”
“Huwag nating hayaang gawing gatasan ang mamamayan sa gitna ng krisis. Ang taas-presyo sa langis ay domino effect—sumisipa ang pamasahe, bilihin, kuryente, at lahat ng pangunahing pangangailangan. Pero hanggang ngayon, wala pa ring konkretong aksyon ang DOE para ipatupad ang unbundling ng presyo,” Zarate said.
Bayan Muna and consumer groups have long called on the DOE to enforce price transparency through unbundling and to repeal or significantly amend the Oil Deregulation Law, which they say has allowed oil companies to manipulate prices with impunity.
“The Oil Deregulation Law has only served the interests of oil cartels and foreign corporations. It has failed the people. We need to junk it and pass a new law that prioritizes consumer protection, national industrialization, and energy sovereignty,” Zarate added.
Zarate also pointed out that while global factors influence pricing, the lack of domestic regulatory mechanisms and political will is what makes Filipino consumers most vulnerable.
“Other countries have buffers. We have none. The government must act now to protect our people, not big business,” he concluded.
Bayan Muna stands with the Filipino people in demanding full transparency and accountability from oil companies and urges the DOE to stop coddling corporate interests and start serving the public good. #
